Failure is a Good Thing

It might not seem like it a the time but just think about it for a moment! If it wasn’t for failure we would not be so fortunate today. The light bulb and the airplane being good examples.

Today I am talking about failure as an artist. I don’t mean giving up and quitting kind of failure. I am speaking of failing to grow.

You see without failure there is no growth. If you aren’t failing you are not taking enough risks. Let me say that again – If you are not failing you are not taking enough risks!

Take a risk is forging ahead to see what is on the other side. There might be lots of failures along the way. From every failure, we learn and grow and our art becomes more authentic. We find our voice.

When we play it safe is it because of fear? Fear of messing up, fear of failing. What if we changed our mindset and didn’t think of it as failure but of research or practice or play.

I try to stay brave and not worry about the outcome. It is not always easy. I like to have a play corner where I can take abandoned risks working on paper.

It is all too easy to become stagnant or get too good at our craft. To keep the fires alive we need to shake it up – try something new, make a bold move on a painting that isn’t working, take a deep breath and take the plunge!